Footwear



`Ian. 19, 1937.

W. H. JOYCE FOOTWEAR Filed June 27, 1936 versn-uva.: 's4-Auf vernam a run Patented Jan. 19, 1937 PATENT ori-ICE antun roorwasa william n. 1010smena, simio Pasadena Slipper Oo., Pasadena, Calif., a oorporation of California applicano. .rma-1, me, sei-m Ns. sam 4 calm. (ci. sc-as) My invention relates to the art of making shoes, and has particular reference to a new and novel slipper construction and the method of manufacturing the same.

In the art of manufacturing shoes, particularly shoes of the type known as bedroom slippers, one or the other of two methods of construction have been employed; (a) the forming of an upper upon a last and attached directly to an insole member, to which is then attached an outsole member, usually formed of relatively stiff leather forming the outsole or tread portion of the slipper, the outsole being secured to the insole by suitable stitching at the edges of the soles, or, (b), the forming of an outsole of relatively thin and pliable leather having its edges upturned and sewed to the lower edges of the upper, with a layer of cushioning or packing material interposed in the cuplike outsole so formed, to thereby produce a soft-soled cushioned slipper.

In the first type of construction, the attachment of the upper directly to the outsole required the forming of a separate heel member to be attached to the outsole in order to provide the necessary heel lift for the slipper, while, in the latter type of construction the life of the slipper was determined by the thickness and wearing qualities of the leather of which the outsole is formed, and if a material of sufficient thinness and pliability to produce the necessary soft sole is employed, the wearing life of the slipper is relatively short. Moreover, the selectionl of the material to be used as the outsole covering would be limited to leather or a similar long-wearing material.

It is an object of my invention to provide a. slipper of the character set forth wherein the slipper is formed of an upper which may be lasted and may be provided with an insole, if desired, an outsole which may be formed of re1- atively sti leather, or similar material having a long wearing life, and a midsole interposed between the outsole and the upper which will provide the necessary and desirable cushioning effect and which may have the heel lift built directly therein.

Another object of the invention is to provide a slipper of the character set forth in the preceding paragraphs, wherein the midsole may be covered with any suitable material, such as cloth, permitting the employment of decorative colors on the midsole and upper to enhance the beauty and appearance of the slipper.

Another object of the invention is to provide a slipper of the character set forth in the preceding paragraphs, wherein the beauty and ecmfort of a Chinese type slipper is obtained without either the discomfort of the at sole and heel characteristic of such slippers, and in which 5 the wearing sole of the shoe is formed as an additional and separate member, lending long life to the construction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a method of constructing a slipper, including an upper, an outsole, a midsole interposed between the upper and outsole, wherein the upper and midsole are secured together by adhesives, and the midsole-and outsole are secured together by adhesives, thereby permitting the midsole to be covered by silk, satin or `other f relatively fragile material.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from a study of the following specifications. read in connection with the accompanying drawing, wherein Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a slipper, constructed in accordance with my invention; 'E

Fig. 2 is a detail view of the midsole employed 25 in the practice of my invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a loop of cloth or similar covering material which may be employed to cover the midsole member shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view, illustrating the 30 manner in which the cloth or similar covering may be applied to my midsole; and

Fig. 5 is lan exploded view illustrating the manner in which the upper, the insole, the midsole with its cover, and the outsole may be assembled together in the practice of my invention.

Referring to the drawing, I have illustrated in Fig. 1 a slipper which includes an upper I which 40 may be, and preferably is, formed over a last, such as is indicated at 2 in Fig 5, and which may be constructed of cloth with or without stiifening material in the toe and counter. The preferred construction of the upper is to form the upper upon the last 2 and to stitch or cement the lower edges of the upper material to a suitable insole 3 by any of the methods or practices well known in the art of manufacturing shoes.

A midsole or cushioning member 4 may be con- 50 structed entirely separately from the upper and which is illustrated particularly in Fig. 2 as comprising a suitable cut shape of felt 5(prefer ably cut to substantially conform with the shape of the sole oi the desired finished slippen-to 'l'.he slipper is also provided with an outsole member 1 which may be formed of thin leather or other material having the characteristic of long wearing life, since this is the part of the slipper which is subjected to the greatest amount of wear during the useful life of the slipper.

By employing the relatively thick midsole 4 the outsole 1 may be formed from a flat sheet of material, there being no necessity or desirability of providing any formed heel member for the outsole 1. Thus it will be observed that by constructing the slipper from an upper, a fiat surfaced outsole member, and a midsole member interposed between them which in itself provides the necessary heel lift and shaping of the footreceiving portion of the slipper, all of the beneiicial characteristics of a slipper having a formed heel are retained while at the same time all of the manufacturing ease of a fiat soled slipper are retained.

Further, by usingv the midsole member as hereinbefore described, the midsole member may be covered with cloth, such as silk, satin or other delicate materials, permitting the use of harmoni'zing color schemes in the decoration of the slipper. For example, the upper may be covered with silk, satin or other cloth of one color, while the midsole may be covered with a similar cloth but of a different color, harmonizlng or contrasting with the color of the upper to present a pleasant, decorative appearance, and the outsole, which is employed, may be edged in black, brown, or any of the other colors 'which are ordinarily employed upon the edges of leather soles, such latter color also being selected to harmonize with the color combination between the upper and the midsole.

'I'he covering of the midsole may be accomplished in any desired manner, though I prefer to form a loop of the covering material in the manner shown in Fig. 3, a strip of the material 8 having its ends sewed together as indicated at 9 to form a loop, the width of which will be sufficient to cover the edge surface of the midsole I with a suitable amount of the material extending above and below the midsole to permit the same to be turned inwardly upon the upper and lower surfaces of the midsole, as shown in Fig. 4 wherein the .dges I0 of the material are illustrated as being turned inwardly and cemented, or otherwise secured, to the surface of the midsole.

The midsole with its covering is then applied to the lasted upper and is secured thereto in any suitable manner. though in view of the fragile character of the covering on the midsole, I prefer to cement the midsole to the upper, as by coating either the upper surface of the midsole or the lower surface of the insole, or both, with a suitable cement, using this adhesive as the sole means of attaching the midsole to the upper. The outsole 1 may then be placed upon the midsole and secured thereto in any suitable manner, as by cementlng the same to the lower surface of the midsole by suitable adhesive, such as described for the attachment of the midsole to the upper.

-If desired. the`inside portion of the insole 3 may be covered with a suitable cloth lining I2.

It will thus be observed that I have provided a slipper construction wherein the upper may be made of any suitable material and may be covered with silk, satin, orother relatively delicate cloth materials in suitable colors, and wherein a midsole forming the desired shape for the foot, and having the heel lift built therein. may be employed to present a flat lower surface to which a flat wearing outsole may be attached and wherein the midsole lends itself to ready, harmonious decoration with the upper by per' lmittlng this insole to be covered with relatively delicate cloth coverings, forming pleasing color combinations with the coloring selected for the upper.

It will also be observed that I have provided a ready method of constructing slippers of the character set forth, adapted both to ease of manufacture and also adapted to permit the decorating of the slipper by the employment of cloth coverings for the upper and midsole members.

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, I do not wish to be limited to any of the details of construction shown herein, except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. In a slipper construction, an upper, the lower edges of which are turned inwardly and secured to the lower surface of an insole, a midsole member comprising a sole portion and a heel lift portion with a beveled upper face in contact with the sole portion, said midsole member being of relatively thick cushioning material having a substantially fiat lower surface and shaped to extend completely over the lower surface of said insole, a covering of relatively thin material extending about the edges of said midsole member, means for securing the upper surface only of said midsole member to the insole, and a substantially at outsole member coextensive with said midsole member and attached solely to the lower surface of said midsole member.

2. In aslipper construction, an upper, the lower edges of which are turned inwardly and secured to the lower surface of an insole, a midsole member of increasing thickness from the rear of the forepart of the shoe to the heel end, and comprising a sole portion and a heel lift portion with a beveled upper face in contact with the sole portion, said midsole member being of relatively thick cushioning material having a substantially flat lower surface and shaped to extend com.-

pletely over the lower surface of said insole, a covering of relatively thin material extending about the edges of said midsole member, means for securing the upper surface only of said midsole member directly to the lower surface of said insole, and an outsole member coextensive with said midsole member and `attached solely to the lower surface of said midsole member.

3. In a slipper construction, an upper, the lower edges of which are turned inwardly and secured to the outer surface of an insole, a midsole member comprising a sole portion, and a heel lift portion with an upper beveled surface in contact with the sole portion, said midsole member constructed of cushioning material shaped to extend completely over the lower surface of the insole, a covering of relatively thin material extending about the edges of said midsole member and attached directly to the upper and lower surfaces of said midsole member,

means securing the upper surface only of said midsole member to said insole, and an outsole member co-extensive with said midsole member and attached solely to the lower surface of said midsole member.

4. In a slipper construction, an upper. the lower edges of which are turned inwardly and secured to an insole, a midsole member of relatively thick cushioning material shaped to extend completely over the surface of said insole and comprising a sole portion of substantially constant thickness and a heel lift portion tapering in thickness toward the shank of the slipper to provide a substantially smooth lower surface to said midsole member, a covering of relatively thin material extending about the edges of said midsole member, means for securing the upper surface only of said midsole member to the insole, and an outsole member cio-extensive with said midsole member and attached solely to the lower surface of said midsole member.

WILLIAM H. JOYCE. 

